Trick Dog opens in the Mission

From left to right: Scott Baird and Josh Harris are the Bon Vivants. Colby Thompson (with Early, his South African boerbull) and Nick Roberto led the design and building. Jason Henton, a bartender, has partnered with them on the space. less

From left to right: Scott Baird and Josh Harris are the Bon Vivants. Colby Thompson (with Early, his South African boerbull) and Nick Roberto led the design and building. Jason Henton, a bartender, has ... more

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 2 of 13

Late afternoon light streaming through the south wall.

Late afternoon light streaming through the south wall.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 3 of 13

Trick Dog is lit primarily by antique shade cutters, rejiggered as sconces. Leaving the cutters as they were (rusty, some painted), they wired long tubular bulbs where the fabric would go and screwed them into the walls. less

Trick Dog is lit primarily by antique shade cutters, rejiggered as sconces. Leaving the cutters as they were (rusty, some painted), they wired long tubular bulbs where the fabric would go and screwed them into ... more

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 4 of 13

On the second floor of Trick Dog, the Bon Vivants have hung Pittsburg-based artist Ed Panars series Animals that Saw Me. The animals, from raccoons to sheep, peer out of mailboxes and from behind flower pots looking surprised. A triptych from him is coming for by the main door. less

On the second floor of Trick Dog, the Bon Vivants have hung Pittsburg-based artist Ed Panars series Animals that Saw Me. The animals, from raccoons to sheep, peer out of mailboxes and from behind flower pots ... more

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 5 of 13

The floor of Trick Dog's upstairs loft, where there are half a dozen tables for those who might want to linger, is made of pink acrylic fortified microtopping.

The floor of Trick Dog's upstairs loft, where there are half a dozen tables for those who might want to linger, is made of pink acrylic fortified microtopping.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 6 of 13

A view from the second floor looking down at the bar.

A view from the second floor looking down at the bar.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 7 of 13

Two levels of Trick Dog and handsome staircases add to the ambience.

Two levels of Trick Dog and handsome staircases add to the ambience.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 8 of 13

The ceiling light fixture at Trick Dog is made of corrugated glass with a metal casing from a naval yard in Philadelphia.

The ceiling light fixture at Trick Dog is made of corrugated glass with a metal casing from a naval yard in Philadelphia.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 9 of 13

Asta Karalis (right) and Zoe Serrigno at Trick Dog's opening night.

Asta Karalis (right) and Zoe Serrigno at Trick Dog's opening night.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 10 of 13

Their aesthetic inspiration came from a small mechanical cast iron piggy bank Harris father gave him when he was 2.

Their aesthetic inspiration came from a small mechanical cast iron piggy bank Harris father gave him when he was 2.

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 11 of 13

Trick Dog is lit primarily by antique shade cutters, rejiggered as sconces. Leaving the cutters as they were (rusty, some painted), they wired long tubular bulbs where the fabric would go and screwed them into the walls. less

Trick Dog is lit primarily by antique shade cutters, rejiggered as sconces. Leaving the cutters as they were (rusty, some painted), they wired long tubular bulbs where the fabric would go and screwed them into ... more

Photo: The Chronicle

Image 12 of 13

At Trick Dog, the service station by the kitchen and around the soapstone bartop is made from re-configured Warfield stairs, with the antique marble stacked perpendicular against the base to work as shelves.

At Trick Dog, the service station by the kitchen and around the soapstone bartop is made from re-configured Warfield stairs, with the antique marble stacked perpendicular against the base to work as shelves.

Josh Harris is standing on the mezzanine of Trick Dog on Saturday, overlooking the flurry of 11th hour construction below, while the late afternoon rain sprinkles outside.

Along with his partner-in-crime Scott Baird — together they are the founders of the Bon Vivants — he’ll open Trick Dog tonight (Jan. 7) in the Mission District; Jason Henton is the third operations partner.

Tonight’s Trick Dog debut is the culmination of a long road. The opening process — mostly the structural rehabilitation of the building — took longer than expected — the original due date was mid-2011. In the meantime, the Bon Vivants opened a pop-up bar at Rio Grande and consulted on a number of cocktail lists around town (Comal, Quince, to name two).

They meticulously designed the two-level space, in conjunction with Wylie Price Design. Upstairs will see a sit-down area and table service; downstairs is the bar and bar happenings. The iron bannisters and stairs were rescued from the old Warfield, and the light fixtures are sconces created from vintage shade-cutters (sorta similar to this). The namesake cast-iron trick dog piggy bank, pictured below, lords above the bar.

***

What Harris means when he calls Trick Dog a “drinking place” is simple. Though they’ve made their name with cocktails (Chronicle Bar Stars, Class of 2010), Trick Dog will be a place for all kinds of drinkers, he says. Open daily from 3pm to 2am, it will be a place to get a glass of wine, or a bottle of beer (no taps), or a non-alcoholic cocktail ($7 ea.) like pineapple, coconut vinegar, lime and soda libation. They even have a vodka drink ($10), made with Hangar One and the bar’s homemade winter cordial.

There will also be a full food menu from chef Chester Watson. Small snacks include radishes served with Campari butter and house-smoked Maldon salt, plus pimento cheese, cracklings, Scotch eggs, beer nuts and brawn (the British name for headcheese). Larger dishes are led by a rice plate of Korean-style pork shoulder and the “Trick Dog” (an Olympic Club-style burger),

trickdog

The actual trick dog.

But of course, the cocktails are the headline-grabber, and rightly so. The menu is molded after the Pantone paint color guide. All the cocktails take their name from an actual color, which is reflected in the physical format of the cocktail list, as teased on the Trick Dog website.